Sandman
|description = Pour sand to build mounds and fill in gaps to help the sleep walkers escape.}} Sandman is a puzzle game released on February 17th, 2006. In the game, the player must guide a group of sleepwalkers through the land of nod using sand. Sandman was Nitrome's second released game. ---- Controls * Mouse '- Click to pour sand Gameplay In Sandman, the player must click and hold to pour an infinite amount of sand. Using this sand, the player has to guide sleepwalkers over obstacles to a portal located at the end of each level. A certain number of sleepwalkers will be spawned at the start, and the player has to get at least one to the end. If the player gets more than one to the end, they are rewarded with extra points. Falling out of the level or coming in contact with any hazards will instantly kill a sleepwalker. Levels Sandman has fifteen levels, each with their own individual names. 01: Stairway to Heaven The player has to pour sand until the sand reaches the edge of the platforms so the sleepwalkers can walk up the slopes. 02: Road Block The player has to pour sand at the edges of the first two platforms so the sleepwalkers can walk up to the halfway-high point, then pour a larger mound of sand to allow the sleepwalkers to walk to the top platform. 03: Tap Dance For the quickest way to complete the level, the player should first pour sand at the edge of the first platform to get the sleepwalkers up the ledge. Then, pour sand above the first pane of glass to allow the sleepwalkers to get out of the middle pit. Finally, sand can be poured just to the right of the third pane of glass until it starts rolling down into the third pit, making a mound for the sleepwalkers to walk out of the third pit with 04: Pit Stop Pour some sand in the first, small pit the sleepwalkers are going to walk in, so that when they fall, they don't die. Next, fill up the pit close to Hot Air all the way to the top. Now, pour some sand in the second pit so the sleepwalkers can get out. 05: Walking in the Air First, pour sand on the six invisible blocks closest to the sleepwalkers. Then pour sand on only two of the next row of invisible blocks on top. Now, pour sand on the three blocks underneath the other two invisible blocks that have sand on them. Underneath the three invisible blocks are five invisible blocks, pour sand on all of those. Finally, pour sand on five ''more invisible blocks that are underneath the previous five. These blocks should be the closest to the portal. 06: Two of a Kind In this level, the left side of the level is a mirror image of the right. First, on both sides, pour some sand on the first five invisible blocks so the sleepwalkers don't fall to their deaths and land on the L shaped platform. Next, on both sides, pour sand on the next five invisible blocks beneath the first five. Finally, on both sides, pour sand on all but the final two blocks of the bottom row of invisible blocks. 07: Hold Up First, pour sand in front of the two invisible blocks stacked on top of each other near the top of the beginning of the level to stop the nightmare from escaping. Then pour sand next to all the ledges in front of the second nightmare and lead it to the third one. Then pour sand on the ledge in front of the third portal to allow the two nightmares to get out and walk to the end of the level past the light portal. When they are at the furthest point to the left in the final cavern, pour sand on the invisible blocks to trap them from leaving. Now that the way is clear and free of nightmares, pour sand on the small ledges near the beginning of the level to allow the sleepwalkers to walk to the end. 08: Deals on Wheels In this short level, pour sand before all the ledges to get the sleepwalkers to the top platform and let them walk into the wooden platform. Then pour sand onto the right side of the wheel to make it turn and move the platform across the watery gap. Then pour sand onto into the corner of the platform to let the sleepwalkers out. 09: Access Denied This is a difficult and tedious level. The player cannot pour over glass, so they have to start at the top of the screen and pour sand down a maze to get to the bottom. It's very easy to make a mistake here. 10: Wild Goose Chase A very short level. The sleepwalkers are the right side and the nightmares are on the left side of the level. Quick timing is important so that the sleepwalkers don't fall off the wrong side of the platforms. The nightmare should not pose a threat. 11: The Great Escape Another level in which the player has to navigate the sleepwalkers while holding off the nightmares. At one point the player needs to turn a wheel so a barrier would open and allow the sleepwalkers to pass through. Keep turning the wheel and don't let the barrier fall or it will crush a sleepwalker. 12: Make A Splash Quick thinking is required in the beginning of the level in which the player has to quickly use sand to build a path across water while blocking the sleepwalkers from falling into the water. Then the player has to use sand to build a path to get onto the platform, and use the wheel to move the platform to get to the exit on the other side. 13: Bridge The Gap Good timing is critical on this level. The wooden platforms move by themselves so the player must know when to get the sleepwalkers onto the wooden platform. 14: Long Way Round The player has to navigate through a maze for a round trip and eventually reach the exit. However, there is a shortcut. Because the exit is on the platform right next to the player;s beginning platform, the player could pour a lot of sand to fill the gap between the beginning and end platforms so the sleepwalkers could just walk through that gap, to complete the level the easy way. 15: Don't Look Down In this level, the sleepwalkers continuously drop down from a higher to a lower platform. The player must be careful that the sleepwalkers are dropping down to the correct platform and that they don't drop off too much and die. The end portal is on the same line as the nightmares portal so the player has to use sand to block off the nightmares at the end. Ending sand!".}} Interactive objects Objects that appear in-game and affect gameplay. *Light portals' - Spawns the sleepwalkers at the beginning of the stage and ends the stage when a sleepwalker reaches the ending portal. *'Dark portals' - Spawns nightmares. *'Glass' - The player cannot pour sand with the cursor on glass. *'Invisible blocks' - Blocks that sleepwalkers can fall through but that sand will touch. *'Wooden water wheel' - Pouring sand on this moves a wooden beam. *'Wooden beams' - Helps transport sleepwalkers across gaps, or blocks their way. They may be controlled manually or move on their own. Hazards These objects will kill a sleepwalker on contact. *'Water' - Will drown a sleepwalker if one walks into it. *'Nightmares' - The only enemies present in Sandman. They will kill a sleepwalker on contact. Glitches Level skip Occasionally after completing a level and clicking the "Next Level" button, the player will be brought two levels ahead instead of one. Falling animation glitch Sometimes when sand is poured on a falling sleepwalker and is continued to be poured on them as they hit the ground their falling animation will continue to play but they will move side to side like normal on the ground. Development Mat Annal, while being interviewed by gotoAndPlay, stated that the inspiration for Sandman came when "trying to build a sand art application and wondering how we Nitrome could make a game out of it"gotoAndPlay - Spotlight: Nitrome Q: What are the games that influenced you the most in your work? A: ...Even client briefs can have an influence game ideas…..Sandman idea came from trying to build a sand art application and wondering how we could make a game out of it.. Gallery Menu for Sandman.png|The titlescreen for Sandman.png|The slider animation for Trivia * The balloon Hot Air from Hot Air appears in some levels. * In level 06, the red squirrel, grey squirrel, and a chick appear on two trees at the bottom right side of the level. * If the player confines a sleepwalker in a small space using their sand, it may end up dying. * The music that plays in the levels is a remix of the song "Mr. Sandman". * Lee Nicklen, the game's composer, made 2 alpha songs for the game but they were not used in the finished product. * References de:Sandman es:Sandman Category:Games Category:Platform games Category:Puzzle games Category:2006 games Category:Programming by Heather Stancliffe Category:Art by Mat Annal Category:Art by Jon Annal Category:Music by Lee Nicklen Category:Level-based games Category:Browser games Category:Miniclip games